Arizona State University (ASU) announced a landmark moment for its rapidly growing health initiative, unveiling both preliminary accreditation for its new medical school and a nine-figure gift from alumnus and physician Dr. John Shufeldt, which will name the institution the John Shufeldt School of Medicine and Medical Engineering.
The newly accredited school, part of ASU Health, can now begin recruiting its inaugural class of students for fall 2026. The Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) granted preliminary accreditation, marking the first significant step toward full accreditation, which will follow once the first class graduates.
Dr. Shufeldt, an emergency medicine physician, entrepreneur, and ASU alumnus, made the transformative donation, the second-largest in ASU’s history, to establish a medical school that blends medicine, engineering, and innovation. The school’s unique structure will enable students to earn both a Doctor of Medicine (MD) and a Master of Science in Medical Engineering within four years.
Shufeldt’s vision aligns with ASU’s mission to redefine medical education by developing physician-engineers who are innovators and compassionate leaders.
The new school, developed in partnership with HonorHealth as its primary clinical affiliate, will combine disciplines such as AI, data science, technology, and the humanities to prepare graduates for a healthcare landscape that demands both technical mastery and human-centered problem-solving.
Beyond classroom and clinical training, the gift will also fund an endowed professorship in medical entrepreneurship and create a health-tech venture philanthropy fund, operated by the ASU Foundation, to support early-stage founders through the new Xcellerant Ventures program.
The John Shufeldt School of Medicine and Medical Engineering will temporarily operate at the Mercado in downtown Phoenix before moving into ASU Health’s planned headquarters at the Phoenix Bioscience Core, scheduled for groundbreaking in spring 2026 and completion in 2028.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are grateful to LCME and to our team that has been working tirelessly to help make this happen.”
“John Shufeldt is the embodiment of the kind of student we want to produce. He is a doctor, an entrepreneur developing new things that impact people’s health and well-being, and is always looking ahead. He is not only contributing financially and lending his name — he is giving his time and talent to what we are building here.”
Michael Crow, President, Arizona State University
“For decades I’ve worked at the intersection of medicine, business, law and innovation. I’ve seen where the systems work from the inside, and where they don’t work. We don’t simply need more physicians. What we do need are more physicians who can innovate, who are leaders, who can do it with a high degree of compassion. That’s why I’m so excited about the new school at ASU, because I know that’s what we’ll be teaching.”
“We don’t simply need more physicians. What we do need are more physicians who can innovate, who are leaders, who can do it with a high degree of compassion.”
“This isn’t for me. This isn’t about legacy. It’s about impact. It’s about training the kind of leaders that I wish I had when I was going through this process as a physician starting out. It’s about building a school committed to the future of medicine and not simply trying to reinvent the past.”
John Shufeldt, Physician, Entrepreneur, and ASU Alumnus
“Our students are going to be fully immersed in both cultures from the very beginning, the medical culture as well as engineering. They’ll learn how to work with mentors not just from clinical fields, but also entrepreneurship and venture capital, so that they will be physician-engineer-entrepreneurs who will really transform the future of health care.”
Dr. Holly Lisanby, Founding Dean, John Shufeldt School of Medicine and Medical Engineering
“The board challenged our universities to accelerate efforts to address Arizona’s health care workforce shortages, and ASU has answered that call to action. With generous support from John Shufeldt and the strategic leadership from the team at ASU Health, the vision of an engineering-focused medical school is now a reality.”
Doug Goodyear, Chair, Arizona Board of Regents
